At Moscow's Hare Krishna temple, Pavlov and the dozens of other devotees in the city can eat vegetarian food to their hearts' content, chant their mantras in peace, and pay their obeisances to Krishna and His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the spiritual master, whose image sits in every Krishna temple worldwide.

On entering the temple, Pavlov pays his obeisances by stretching out face down on the floor; by prostrating himself instead of simply kneeling or bowing, he says, he is demonstrating his humility before Krishna. Pavlov does not take his faith lightly: eight years after his conversion, he still speaks of Krishna with great reverence and awe, and he gives 10% of all income from his rap group to the church. Going to the temple, chanting the mantra, dancing and playing the drums in worship -- all these things seem to him a natural and joyful extension of faith.

"According to the Krishna faith, chanting, dancing and feasting are what people should be doing on this earth," he says. Perhaps with a little rapping thrown in.